The Marvels of Bamboo Basketry

Bamboo basketry is widespread in China and features different local flavors in different places. It is remarkably diverse in terms of technique, form and method of decoration. The techniques range from the delicate and graceful to the rustic and bold.
Weavers gather and carefully choose bamboo materials in accordance to the following principles:
Maturity: Bamboo aged four to six years is most suitable. Younger bamboo is prone to shrinkage and is often worm-eaten; that over six years, on the other hand, is very mature and cannot be easily broken.
Production area: Bamboo grown in mountains is better due to its softness, tenacity and flexibility from the high humidity in mountains.
Length between nodes: The longer and the flatter, the node rings the better.
Calibers of both ends: The less disparity there is between the two calibers the better.